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By consuming seasonal fruit, you save money and help protect the environment

Image: Brenda Godinez in Unsplash

Fruits are fundamental to any healthy diet. They provide vitamins and minerals such as potassium, zinc, calcium and magnesium, as well as dietary fiber that helps regulate the body. Sources of vitamins A, C and E, they are also responsible for protecting our body, increasing the defense against disease. However, each fruit develops best in a specific season of the year, a period called the harvest. Therefore, knowing the ideal season for each fruit and the benefits of consuming them during the harvest is extremely important.

Reasons to consume seasonal fruits

According to nutritionist Ana Cristina Ulhôa Rodrigues, seasonal fruits are fresher and more nutritious than those planted and harvested out of season. This is because when grown in their natural period, fruits better capture nutrients from the soil in which they are planted. Therefore, seasonal fruits guarantee a healthier and more natural diet.

Outside the ideal planting season, fruits are grown in greenhouses and may require the addition of pesticides, pesticides and fertilizers for their development. This can also affect the nutritional value of these fruits, making the flavors weaker. Seasonal fruits, on the other hand, are tastier and nutritious, as their cycles are respected.

There are a few reasons why seasonal fruit has a better price for the end consumer: first, because there is a greater offer, since this is the season when it grows best. In addition, seasonal fruits are often grown shorter distances from where they are sold, enabling consumers to purchase fresher produce. This is also favorable because it contributes to the local economy, saves fuel, minimizes the emission of polluting gases and reduces food waste during transport.

Discover the seasons of some common fruits in Brazil

Fruits can have the beginning of the harvest and the harvest properly in different seasons. Therefore, they tend to be predominant in two seasons of the year. Find out what they are:

summer fruits

• Avocado
• Plum
• Banana Apple
• Fig
• Earl fruit
• Guava
• Mango
• Passion fruit
• watermelon
• Melon
• clove tangerine

autumn fruits

• Avocado
• Banana Apple
• cashew
• Khaki
• Kiwi
• Papaya
• Melon
• Pear
• Pomegranate
• clove tangerine
• tangerine ponkan
• Grape

winter fruits

• Pineapple
• cashew
• Melon
• Strawberry
• loquat
• Pear
• Grape

spring fruits

• Pineapple
• Guava
• Jabuticaba
• Mango
• watermelon
• Nectarine
• loquat
• Peach

How to choose seasonal fruits?

The color and aroma are two strong differences between seasonal fruits and those planted and picked out of season. If you're attracted to the smell of a fruit gondola, that's a good sign.